Blogging for the Gray Wolf

As the weekend closes 46 wolves have been slaughtered in the Montana and Idaho hunts and that number is going to skyrocket once the cold weather hits and wolves lose their cover. Idaho wolf trapping season begins November 15, the tortures wolves will suffer is beyond measure. Wolf families torn apart, their pups killed.

There are vengeful people out hunting wolves. All you have to do is look at some of the disgusting anti-wolf sites to see the terrible things that are being said. One wanna be “wolf hunter” quoted Wyatt Earp’s famous line from Tombstone: “You tell ’em I’M coming… and hell’s coming with me, you hear?…”. Does that even sound rational to you?

Wolf advocates knew this would happen, that’s why we fight so hard to protect them. It’s a culture war out there and it has little to do with wolves.

Lets not forget who made this all possible. In April of this year 81 US Senators voted to delist wolves via budget rider, stripping wolves in Idaho and Montana of their much-needed ESA protections. It was a bitter betrayal by Senate Democrats.

Interestingly, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, allowed separate votes on two other riders in the budget bill. One sought to defund Planned Parenthood and the other Obamacare. Both were defeated.

Wolves weren’t so lucky. The wolf rider didn’t get a separate vote, it was the only rider left in the budget bill. ALL Democrat Senators, save three. voted yea. I watched it on C-Span. Lots of camaraderie and smiles. It was disgusting. No mention of gutting the ESA or delisting wolves.

“If the Democratic women in the Senate defeated the use of procedurally unethical tactics to achieve a “radical agenda against women” outside the public debate, they did not succeed in preventing Democratic Senator John Tester’s “divisive policy rider” from stripping endangered species protection from gray wolves in the Northern Rocky Mountains.

In response to this failure, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) lamented: “It is a shameful day for this nation when both parties unite behind the slaughter of an endangered species—without public hearing or debate.” The NRDC also noted that “Congress has never before removed an animal from the endangered species list. By replacing scientific judgment with political calculation, the House and Senate have struck at the very heart of wildlife protection in America.”

Thus, under threat of a government shutdown, unprincipled politicians pursued an “extreme social agenda” not just against women, but also against the environment, the Endangered Species Act, the endangered grey wolf, and all Americans who hope for a future in which the integrity of our ecosystems is still preserved.”

I guess the Senators thought they’d pulled a fast one on the American people. After all, the wolf rider was not mentioned on C-Span before the vote, at least I didn’t hear it. If you were watching you’d never know gray wolves in Montana and Idaho were about to lose their ESA safeguards. It seemed Senators were simply voting on an appropriations bill. The sad truth? Democrats, with help from Republicans, were about to gut the ESA and deliver wolves to brutal state management, all under cover of a hush-hush budget rider.

And we can’t forget Obama, he signed the bill into law. But then what can we expect from a President who appointed a rancher to head the Interior? A President who delisted gray wolves in the Northern Rockies just a few months into his first term. In fact he has delisted wolves twice in less than four years, not even George Bush can make that claim.

Make no mistake, if the Democrats had not betrayed wolves, they wouldn’t be facing hunts in Idaho and Montana. Even though hunting and ranching lobbies were pushing hard for hunts, without the help of Congress, they wouldn’t be taking place, at least not this year. And personally I believe they would have continued to lose in court and they knew it too. So they partnered up with Western politicians, eager to gain mileage from “wolf wars”. The worst sort of politics.

The Senate could easily have stripped the rider out of the budget bill or allowed an up or down vote on it, as they did for the other two riders.

In my opinion, Senators didn’t want to “go on the record” and vote for the wolf delisting rider outright, so they tucked it away in the budget bill. The ESA was used and abused for political gain. For the first time, a species like the wolf, who has a long history of persecution and ultimately extermination in the West, was removed from the Endangered Species List for political reasons, science be damned.

Johnson (D-SD)

Kerry (D-MA)

Klobuchar (D-MN)

Kohl (D-WI)

Landrieu (D-LA)

Lautenberg (D-NJ)

Lieberman (ID-CT)

Manchin (D-WV)

McCaskill (D-MO)

Menendez (D-NJ)

Merkley (D-OR)

Mikulski (D-MD)

Murray (D-WA)

Nelson (D-FL)

Nelson (D-NE)

Pryor (D-AR)

Reed (D-RI)

Reid (D-NV)

Roberts (R-KS)

Rockefeller (D-WV)

Schumer (D-NY)

Shaheen (D-NH)

Stabenow (D-MI)

*Tester (D-MT)

Udall (D-CO)

Udall (D-NM)

Warner (D-VA)

Webb (D-VA)

Whitehouse (D-RI)

Remember these Democrat Senators at the polling booth in 2012, they need to be booted out of office. As a matter of fact every Senator who voted yes should not be invited to serve another term. We need politicians who will resist political pandering. Governing by budget rider is wrong and intolerable. Politically delisting wolves and tearing apart the ESA to please special interests is despicable. Now wolves are paying the price of that betrayal.

Senate Republicans Who Voted No on the Budget/Wolf Delisting Rider

Coburn (R-OK

Crapo (R-ID)

DeMint (R-SC)

Ensign (R-NV)

Graham (R-SC)

Hatch (R-UT)

Inhofe (R-OK)

Johnson (R-WI)

Lee (R-UT)

Paul (R-KY)

Risch (R-ID)

Rubio (R-FL)

Shelby (R-AL)

Toomey (R-PA)

Vitter (R-LA)

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*To be fair, I believe many of these Republicans knew the Democrats had the votes to pass the budget bill/wolf rider. So, they were free to vote no, not because they were wolf lovers but to make a statement about their dislike of the budget bill. Some of the names in the no vote column are not known to be wolf advocates. My 2 cents.

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Senate Independents Who Voted No on the Budget/Wolf Delisting Rider

Bernie Sanders (I-VT)

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This should never have happened. After eight years of George Bush the country was looking for positive change. I think the promise was “hope and change” but instead we got “more of the same.”

It’s ironic, Bill Clinton oversaw the reintroduction of wolves into the Northern Rockies and Obama is overseeing their destruction.

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Endangered Wolves Sacrificed in Budget Deal

Glenn Hurowitz

Senior Fellow, Center for International Policy

Posted: 04/11/11 04:09 PM ET

Although Majority Leader Harry Reid and President Barack Obama stood firm against Republican attempts to repeal clean air and clean water protections, wolves in the Northern Rockies weren’t so lucky.

Under pressure from ranching interests in Montana and Idaho, as well as anti-wolf zealots in those states, Reid and Obama agreed to accept an amendment from Montana Democrat Jon Tester mandating the removal of grey wolves in Idaho and Montana from the endangered species list. For Obama, at least, the move isn’t surprising: his administration backed the Bush administration’s delisting of wolves even though it would allow the two massive states to cut wolf populations to as few as 450 individuals between them.

Suggest reporting the extreme comments from anti-wolf cretins on their postings (public forums) to the powers that ‘shouldn’t’ be. Screen copy and print out and send to your two state senators, as well as Harry Reid, Barbara Boxer, Salazar, Obama, the Governors, – I also sent a few graphic photos of the wolves brutalized and killed by these lesser people, in a inexpensive wood frame to my two state senators to show them what a horrific Pandora’s Box they have opened for defenseless wolves; and show they the carnage they are responsible for. I have also, and will continue, to complain about the sadists rantings of Toby Bridges of Missoula Montana on Lobo Watch – this individual has given instructions on how to ‘gut shoot’ a wolf so “he won’t die right away”, and he has given instructions on how to poison wolves with xylitol. This sadistic worm, should have his hunting/trapping license revoked. He has a shaddy past, has been arrested, has poached, has domestic violence charges against him as well. Report Toby Bridges!

…p.s. my next letter on Bridges will go to the state attorney general of Montana and the FBI – this guy is influencing a lot of lesser people that wolves are “dangerous to humans” (will eat your baby!), wolves eat horses, kittens, and are “LAND SHARKS”!!! He uses lies, legends, and fairy tales and creates his own habitual lies about wolves constantly. He is obsessed with hatred and distain for the iconic wolf – even blaming the wolves for killing an Alaskan tourist, albeit the coroner cleared the wolves! He is brainwashing everyone and anyone who will listen against wolves. He is a sociopath at best, but likelly a psychopath.

I am very disturbed by the hate towards the wolves and i had a very bad experience with the Lobo Watch group on facebook.I made a couple of pro wolf comments on their page and then they kept harassing me for the rest of the day with very disrespectful ,hateful comments /emails…i actually ended up closing my facebook account because of it. I can only imagine what pro wolf activist have to deal with in Montana,Idaho,Wyoming….hard to believe this is happening in the united states in the 21st century….shame on this government !!!

I do like your idea to sent anti-wolf comments to our Senators…I’m going to steel myself and go to his website and collect some and Send to Boxer & Feinstien my Senators. Does anyone know if Earth Justice is still working on this? And Friends of Animals?

crystalwolf….I think we should be polite but make the Senators aware that what they did is totally wrong. They unleashed these people upon the wolves. Other sites are Anti Wolf Idaho, Anti Wolf Northwest, Hunt Wolves ( all on FB). That would be enough to keep you busy. I’d send the links to these sites to the Senators and ask them why they did it, especially since Democrats are supposed to be keepers of the environment. I don’t think most people know they all voted that way. It’s been kept on the down low. It’s time to start writing to them. We need a law that will reverse what they did. Let them know you will work to defeat them in the 2012 election or at least not vote for them. Too bad some of these Senators, like Boxer, were already re-elected to another term. But many are up for re-election.

When you say is EarthJustice working on this, do you mean the lawsuit? The lawsuit is now on appeal and sitting in California with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

@Linda you said “even blaming the wolves for killing an Alaskan tourist, albeit the coroner cleared the wolves!”
Is he talking about the teacher that was killed in Chignik?
I have been waiting for DNA results from the State Veterinarian and never saw them? I don’t think wolves killed her more like a bear and the wolves came later…but I’ve never seen a coroner or Veterinarian say this…do you have the link? Thanks.

Hi Kathey…Yes we do need to remember these names, they should all be booted out of office for what they did, especially the Democrats, they were the biggest hypocrites of all.

I hate to rain on your parade concerning Crapo. but I’m pretty sure he’s not a wolf adovcate. To explain his no vote:

*To be fair, I believe many of these Republicans knew the Democrats had the votes to pass the budget bill/wolf rider. So, they were free to vote no, not because they were wolf lovers but to make a statement about their dislike of the budget bill. Some of the names in the no vote column are not known to be wolf advocates. My 2 cents.

I think if the vote had been close and not 81 to 19, Crapo would have voted yes to make sure the wolf rider passed BUT since the vote was not close the Republicans who voted no could express their displeasure with the budget bill and still have the wolf rider pass.

I think there should be some serious monkeywrenching done in Idaho when the trapping season starts. Is there anyone courageous enough to find the traplines and destroy them? Is this impossible? If I had the resources and was physically able I would certainly consider this. If anti-wolf fanatics want a war we should give them one.

Judy…there is a law in Idaho that prevents anyone from interfering with hunters, which I’m sure includes trappers. So there’s that and if was as easy to find and remove traps then there wouldn’t be organizations like Footloose and other anti-trap organizations. I think trapping is one of the most gutless forms of “hunting”. It’s medieval. We have to win this court case and up the protests The Oregon protest for the Imnaha pack got lots of attention. Let’s keep it up.

I have been writing to Feinstein (she is up for re – election) and pointed out there is no reason to vote democrat if this what they do – not that I would vote for those AH republicans – I just won’t vote. A lot of what happens to the Wolves is pretty horrific and I do not think most people have any idea – although the information is out there if they care to find out. Too bad CNN does not do one of their specials on the whole horrible mess – I wrote to Anderson Cooper asking that he take on the livestock industry and show what they are doing all over w/ help of BLM, etc. but, no response – I’m sure even CNN does not want to take on the livestock industry, Interior, etc. etc. They need to get the images on television – than they will not have to say much!

I just checked out the black ribbon site – unbelievable “harvest” I checked a bouple of the sites, but I am sick to my stomach – tha stupid asshole w/ a probable iq of a gnat proudly standing over a very large elk w/ what stickout out of him? my god, these people are a nightmare and all of this should go the news shows – see how the “mother’s” of america react to this shit

this is very upsetting and I continue to write my idiot senator’s Feinstein & Boxer – now I will ask them if they know what “gut-shooting” is? I reiterate all of this should be on television – isn’t there someone not afraid of the nut cases? they need to show on television graphic examples As an aside I have a long-coat German Shepherd who has same face as the black Wolf you show & the short ears – she looks like a Wolf

Pat, the story of wolves’ betrayal has been silenced because it happened under a Democrat admin. and the liberal media won’t talk about it. They don’t want Obama exposed to be anti-environment. This story has gotten so little play it’s patently obvious nobody wants to touch it. I’m not a Republican but they couldn’t have done any worse then this supposed Democrat President. He has made such a mess of things and turned wolf recovery into a nightmare, all in less then three years. Quite the feat. I hope he’s a one term President but his replacement will be more of the same. Still Obama does not deserve another term in office.

Warfare has often been portrayed in culture as a means for boys to make a ritual transition to manhood. Initiating boys into manhood by using a sniper rifle to kill wolves is a kind of substitute for military training. It’s an extension of the paramilitary culture that developed in the U.S. in the 1970s.

The boy is not using a .50 machine gun. Instead, he’s firing a semi-automatic rifle that uses the Browning cartridge. It’s a legal rifle. Killing at long range–in the video, the target is at 400 yards–is another way to signify the paramilitary warrior’s power. See my book, “Warrior Dreams: Paramilitary Culture in Post-Vietnam America,” Hill and Wang, 1994. The owners of such weapons might not have much money or prestige or political power, but they see their weapons as giving them lethal control over a radius: “I can kill anything within x yards, anyway.”

Thanks for clarifying Bill concerning the Browning. I was just struck how brain washed this kid seemed to be.

That kind of firepower, being used to hunt animals, is so gross I can hardly stand it. You are right though, the weapons are an extension, giving them lethal power over “something”. Maybe the saying should be “Mama don’t let your babies grow up to be hunters”. Military weapons have no place in our forests. It’s wildlife warfare.

Is there a way to impact all the senators at one time, with letters, & e mails, or phone calls to show opposition to what their doing? To stand up & let them know we the people are very against their vote. Also what would it take to have the decisions concerning wild animals taken away from these people who have no compassion for any of the animals? Thanks Caryn

This blog is dedicated to the memory of Wolf 253, the beloved Yellowstone Druid wolf named Limpy, who was shot and killed in March 08, on the very day ESA protections were lifted for the gray wolf, by the then Bush Administration.